Indian FM S Jaishankar lands in Pakistan for SCO summit

Indian Minister for External Affairs Subrahmanyam Jaishankar has arrived in Pakistan for the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation (SCO) summit, marking the first visit by someone holding this office to the neighbouring nation in nearly a decade.

Islamabad is hosting the 23rd meeting of the SCO’s Council of Heads of Government (CHG) with stringent security measures are in place to ensure the event proceeds smoothly.

Indian FM’s plane landed just before 3:30pm at an airbase near the capital Islamabad, a foreign office official said, as TV footage showed him receiving a bouquet of flowers from children. 

Jaishankar was among nearly a dozen leaders participating in the gathering in Islamabad, which was culminating with the main event on Wednesday. 

It has been nearly a decade since a foreign minister from Pakistan’s arch-rival India visited as relations remain frosty between the two nuclear powers.

Both sides have said no bilateral meeting is planned.

Relations between the two countries have gone through periods of thaw from time to time but have been largely frozen since Pakistan downgraded diplomatic ties in 2019 following abrogation of Article 370 — revoking special status of Indian Illegally Occupied Jammu and Kashmir (IIOJK).

The meeting of the SCO, a Eurasian security and political group formed in 2001 by Russia and China, is the highest-profile event hosted by the troubled South Asian nation in years.

Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif will preside over the high-level meeting, which will see the participation of prime ministers and high-ranking officials from the SCO member states, including Russia, Belarus, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan, Uzbekistan, and the First Vice President of Iran.

As the delegates from participating countries arrived, the federal capital received a facelift with colorful lights, floral decorations, and flags and banners from SCO member states to welcome the dignitaries.

Today, a red carpet was rolled out to welcome the guests, underscoring the importance of the event and the cordial relations between the two nations.

Children dressed in traditional attire presented bouquets to the foreign dignitaries.

Jaishankar was the last one to arrive and receive a welcome by the Pakistani officials by the filing of this report.

Before that, Federal Minister for Education and Professional Training Khalid Maqbool Siddiqui gave a warm reception to Turkmenistan’s Deputy Chairman of the Cabinet of Ministers Rashid Meredov at Islamabad International Airport.

Tajik PM Kohir Rasulzoda and Kyrgyz Republic PM Akylbek Japarov along with his delegation were received by Federal Minister for Commerce Jam Kamal Khan and Federal Minister for Petroleum Musadik Malik with the official protocol, respectively.

Earlier, Belarusian premier Roman Golovchenko was received by Federal Minister for Law and Justice Senator Azam Nazeer Tarar at the Islamabad International Airport.

PM Shehbaz will assume the chair of the SCO CHG today for one-year period as India relinquished it after 17 months.

On Monday, the premier gave special welcome to his Chinese counterpart Li Qiang, who arrived a day ahead of the commencement of the three-day activity in Islamabad.

The government had announced a three-day public holiday in Islamabad, with schools and businesses shut and large contingents of police and paramilitary forces deployed.